Cam Newton's release prompted a handful of proposed landing spots for the former MVP, including backing up Dak Prescott in Dallas.
The Cowboys appreciate and respect Newton for his accomplishments and abilities, but don't appear to be interested.
"I think he has a ton of football left," Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy said of Newton on Thursday. "But we're very excited about the group that we have."
Dallas' group is headlined by Prescott, the new $160 million man returning from a gruesome ankle injury suffered early in the 2020 season. Behind him is Cooper Rush, who won the backup job after outperforming Garrett Gilbert in preseason action, despite failing to impress against a Jacksonville lineup filled mostly with starters in the Cowboys' final preseason game. New arrival Will Grier, who was released by Carolina this week before being claimed by the Cowboys, takes up the No. 3 role in the quarterbacks room.
Both Rush and Grier have seen regular-season action, though Grier has spent more time on the field than Rush, starting two games in 2019 and completing 28 of 52 passes for 228 yards and four interceptions. It's far from exciting, but at least provides the Cowboys with a signal-caller who has seen a decent amount of snaps in case of emergency.
Realistically, Dallas can't afford another injury to Prescott, whose departure tanked the Cowboys' chances last season. They're not planning on it, either, but instead of backing up the dynamic Prescott with a quarterback who has similar physical capabilities, they're instead going with a backup who is familiar with their system while getting Grier acclimated.
That leaves Newton floating in free agency as Week 1 nears. There are other logical pairings elsewhere, but for now, Newton remains unemployed.
